According to an Emory University study, increases in HIV infection rates can be tied to the atmosphere of intolerance that surrounds bans on same-sex marriage. The Southern Voice quoted a press release stating:
“In the first study of the impact of social tolerance levels toward gays in the United States on the HIV transmission rate, the researchers estimated that a constitutional ban on gay marriage raises the rate by four cases per 100,000 people.”
This makes sense. When HIV/AIDS was first spreading like wildfire through the gay community it was in a country that still persecuted gays. People were made to feel like they had to hide what they were and what they did. That sort hostile environment leads to risky behavior.
Hugo Mialon, one of the economists who conducted the research said, "Intolerance is deadly. Bans on gay marriage codify intolerance, causing more gay people to shift to underground sexual behaviors that carry more risk."
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